A few days ago I read with amusement that Microsoft were offering anyone the chance of downloading the test release of their latest desktop operating system, Windows 7. Now, they had the wisdom to warn that this latest test version is full of bugs, just in case some people were expecting a working operating system.
Windows 7 (formerly codenamed Blackcomb and Vienna) is the next release of Microsoft Windows, an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, Tablet PCs, netbooks and media centre PCs.
But what strikes me as crazy now, is that they still have not managed to sort out their current, and previous, operating systems. I am currently using Vista on a newish Dell pc, with 4Gb RAM and a pretty standard but fast Duo Core CPU.
I do not ask too much of this computer though, so really, I would expect few problems. However, those that warned me that in time Vista would slowly grind to a halt were indeed right. When I decided to buy a new PC, I received the following advice:
- Install Windows XP
- Install a Linux distribution (best bet Ubuntu).
At the time I thought that this was just the usual Microsoft bashing, and that people who had problems in the past with Vista were running it on older, slower computers. But this evening I had my 3rd crash. For no apparent reason, both my keyboard and mouse stopped working.
This made my system unusable, and left me with the only option of hitting the power switch, losing unsaved work, and rebooting.
Now, Microsoft have been building operating systems for sometime now, so really I would not expect such simple crashes. If I were using 3rd party products, then maybe a keyboard / mouse failure would not be unexpected every now and then.
But I have Microsoft wired keyboard and a Microsoft wired mouse. One moment they were working, and the next, both dead.
On rebooting the PC, Vista did kindly inform me that new drivers had been installed and that the “new” hardware was now available for use. Great. Like I had not been using them for months already. This is the second time this has happened.
And why has there been no fix for these failures? My computer as a common as mud, as are my keyboard and mouse, and yet bugs in Vista mean that they periodically stop working. And now Microsoft is planning to release its next “operating” system. I wonder what won’t work in this version? Monitors, ethernet cables, disk drives?
Maybe one day Microsoft will see the light and move to a UNIX based operating system, to create stable and logical operating systems like Apple and Linux.
It probably will not be long before even Google have a better operating system than Microsoft, and no doubt that will be free too. Bring it on.
I have had almost enough of Windows. In fact, maybe this is time to move on. The only reason I stuck with Windows was for Photoshop (now a very old version) and playing games. But I now use GIMP for all my photo editing needs (Photoshop is actually still sitting on an old XP machine). Although I do like the odd game. If only games ran well on Ubuntu.
If Microsoft will be remembered for anything, it will be for the brainwashing of a generation into believing that the shortcomings of their software is normal and acceptable. If you think about it rationally, adding extra software to your system that eats up memory and degrades your CPU’s performance just so your computer will be safe on the Internet is ludicrous. Operating systems are not supposed to need extra software just so they can do the job they were sold for. Microsoft is a marketing company first and an technology company second. As long as their customers don’t revolt (worse than the Vista debacle anyway) they will continue to sell software that belittles the user’s intelligence.
I’ve used Linux for almost 4 years now. Sometimes I need to use Vista. Usually just before I say good-bye to it forever (I install Linux for my friends and family). After using Linux as long as I have I’ve grown accustomed to its quiet efficiency. It stays out of my way. It only reacts when I do something. After 20 minutes with Vista I ready to kill it. It falls all over itself trying to tell me how helpful it is. It gets in my way. It does stuff continually without my request. If I was given the choice of using any Microsoft OS or an abacus, I’d take the abacus.
I suspect you’ll get comments telling you that they’ve used Vista since Beta 1 and have not had a single lockup, infection or lost data. I don’t doubt them. If they are happy with Vista, then they should continue using it. But to insinuate that Microsoft has ever made and OS that’s ready for the desktop market is too absurd for words. Yes, I know who has 89% of the desktop market. I also know who sells OSs that are not safe as delivered.
I remember talking to a techy pal many years ago about Apple’s operating system, and suggesting that the reason they do not suffer from viruses is simply because people had not yet dedicated their time to developing viruses to attack the Apple OS. But he was quick to explain to me how such infections are practically impossible on Macs and Linux OS. Considering that this was probably about 8 years ago, and that some of the biggest headaches for home users seems to be virus, trojans, phishing etc. it seems crazy that the worlds largest and most well respected computer company are still making operating systems that are vulnerable to attack.